1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of fire fighting and specifically to a portable, hand-held tool usable by one person to fight fires and even more specifically to a portable, hand-held tool that can be used in the fighting of fires contained within confined spaces and the like. Still more specifically, this invention relates to a portable, hand-held fire fighting tool that can be quickly and easily connected, using a hose line, to a large supply and large volume of fire fighting extinguishing agent and delivered to and through said tool under pressure by a piece of fire apparatus such as a booster tank pumper vehicle or fire hydrant.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There are a number of prior art instruments that are described as useful in fighting fires contained within a building. One of these is a large, spear-like element that is akin to a battering ram. This device is used by several fire fighters for penetrating walls, ceilings and roofs of buildings. The device is connected by a hose to a fire fighting extinguishing agent. After penetrating the building causing a large hole therein, the fire fighting extinguishing agent flows through the hose and into the interior of the building helping to extinguish any fire contained therein. The problem with this and other devices offered by the prior art is that they require more than one fire fighter to function and additionally are difficult and clumsy to haul about the scene of fires contained within confined areas, for example. In addition, these prior art devices cause a large hole to be made in the structure and this hole can permit oxygen and drafts to enter, enlarging the fire.
In our previously filed applications mentioned above, we describe a portable, hand-held fire fighting tool that can be used in fighting fires contained within a vehicle such as a car or truck. This device is designed to be used by a single fire fighter and is connectable with a quick connection device to portable sources of fire extinguishing agent such as that contained within a fire extinguisher, for example. Within the specification and file of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/203,039, filed Feb. 28, 1994 and allowed Dec. 28, 1994 there are a number of other references which describe fire fighting instruments or tools and those references are incorporated herein by reference. All of these prior art devices fail in a number of ways to operate within the metes and bounds of this invention. For example, our portable fire fighting tool of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/203,039, filed Feb. 28, 1994 and allowed Dec. 28, 1994 cannot be connected to a larger source of fire extinguishing agent and thus is useful only to fight smaller fires contained within a vehicle. Other prior art elements fail for other reasons such as clumsiness or lack of portability, for example. Still other prior art elements are cumbersome or have a host of complicated parts and devices which render them difficult to use in fighting fires within confined spaces.